A report from Albania, that the country will open its border to all ethnic Albanians from the region, caused outrage in Macedonia. According to the report, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced that the country will open the borders for Albanians from Kosovo and Macedonia, in an attempt to save its tourism season. As announced by Albanian media outlets, the measure would exclude Macedonian citizens who are not ethnic Albanians.

The Government of the Republic of Macedonia needs to issue a strong response to this 19th century madness, said VMRO-DPMNE member of Parliament Ilija Dimovski. “This is discrimination on ethnic grounds toward the citizens of the Republic of Macedonia. We have an obligation to make sure that other countries treat all Macedonian citizens equally”, Dimovski said.

Albania was known to introduce such ethnically selective measures in the past. For a long time, an entrance fee was charged at its border but applied only to non-Albanians.